So this came to me. Randomly. After updating Analogous tonight. And apparently I can't complete a full chapter of that, and I can't work on the fic collab I have due in less than two weeks, but I CAN start a new multi – chapter Waige + Ralph fic that deals with how complicated relationships are when you start thinking about biology vs. relationships forged by choice.


Blood of the covenant is thicker than water of the womb.


"Walter."

He rolled over. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah." Paige shifted her weight, hauling herself into a sitting position. "But I can't sleep through them anymore."

"That is a good thing," Walter said. "It means you're progressing." She'd been having mild contractions, off and on, for nearly three days. But until now, she'd only noticed them when awake, or when not distracted by something else.

"Yep." She smiled at him. "Today could be the day. Are you excited?"

"Of course I am," Walter said. "Aren't you?"

"Well of course," Paige responded. "But this is the first time you get to experience all this."

Walter was going to remind her that he wasn't looking forward to her having to go through the process of bringing their son into the world. But they'd had that conversation before. It's part of the deal, Paige said to him, and it's all worth it, once we see him. It's worth it a million times over. I promise. You'll see. So, to respond to her, he simply nodded.

Paige grabbed his hand. "The first time you'll get to hold a little baby in your arms and know that he came from you. The first time someone will grab onto your finger. The first time you'll get to cuddle someone close and feed them and they'll fall asleep in your arms..." she smiled at him lovingly. "It's an incredible experience, Walter. Becoming a parent."

The first time she'd said this to him, back in the second month, Walter had reminded her that he was already a parent. I know you are, Paige had responded. You're just as much Ralph's parent as you are parent to this child. But you become a parent each time you have a child. The books, the classes, they prepare you for the birth of the child. But there's nothing that can prepare you for the birth of a parent. It's the greatest feeling in the world. So he smiled. "I can't believe he's almost here."

Paige smiled. "I do wish you'd let me name him after you."

"That feels so narcissistic." Walter still had no guilt over his feelings of superiority when it came to comparing his intelligence to most of the population – though it was easy to be humbled even in that department when one of the four people smarter than him shared his living space – but when it came to personal relationships, even nineteen months into a relationship with Paige Dineen, he was still self-conscious about how he came across.

"Just the middle name. And we could call him Wally."

"That is a terrible nickname."

"Well, do you have any ideas, genius?" She leaned back against the pillows and smiled.

"No," he admitted. "None at all. It doesn't make sense. Names don't mean anything, not really. In theory we should be able to just open up a book of baby names, close our eyes, point, and that's his name. But nothing feels right." He shook his head. "Is this something normal people struggle with?"

Paige nodded. "Absolutely. I knew Ralph's name early on because I knew I wanted to name him after my father. And that was his middle name. But after that I kinda ran out of fathers." She ran her thumb across the top of Walter's hand. "Maybe we'll know when we see him, huh? We've been throwing these names around for a while. I don't think anything will change until he's here."

"You're probably right." Walter ran a hand over her stomach. "Do you think it's time to go to the hospital?"

Paige shifted her weight. "Water hasn't broken. And..." she glanced at the clock radio on the stand next to the bed. "They're definitely more than five minutes apart. We can wait, still. I went to the hospital really early with Ralph and they think the stress of being in an unfamiliar environment prolonged it."

Walter rose, leaning over to kiss her forehead. "I'm just going to go out and let Ralph know that you're up."

"Kay." Paige's eyes were soft as she looked up at him. "I love you."

"I love you," he echoed, pausing to look at her, squeezing her hand. He never liked to say it and then immediately leave the room.

She smiled. "Go."

He closed the door quietly behind him, even though he knew that she wouldn't fall back asleep now. He knew he wouldn't either – he hadn't the first twenty four hours. It was all too exhilarating.

This baby hadn't been planned, but hadn't exactly been an accident, either. They'd just reunited, after more than a week apart on a case in Poland. What was supposed to be a thirty six hour job – maximum – had escalated, quickly and to dangerous proportions, and Walter, Paige, and Sylvester had spent four days separated and in near solitary confinement. The team had reunited at a motel, where they'd spend a night before sending in their final reports to the embassy and flying home. Walter never brought condoms with him on a job, and Paige hadn't had access to her pills in nine days. But they'd been starved for each other's touch after such an extended period of time completely alone.

"Risk it?" She asked against his lips, a hand running through his hair as she shifted her position on the couch to find one of the buttons on his shirt.

"Risk it," he'd groaned in response.

The blood test had come back positive seven weeks later, confirming what their instincts and four home tests had already told them. They'd kept it to themselves for a week before telling Ralph, and another week somehow managed to go by before the rest of the team found out.

Everyone had been supportive, but Ralph's response was what was burned into Walter's memory. The boy's face had lit up in a way Walter hadn't seen since he and Paige had told him that they were together.

The following day, Ralph had asked if he could call Walter dad. Paige's response had been concern – wondering if he'd felt threatened. But no, Ralph said. It just felt right. He'd been thinking about asking for a while.

When he'd gone off to school, Paige had flung her arms around Walter. I'm so happy.

Me too.

Ralph had been the one to tell the team, with Walter and Paige's permission. Ralph went to as many doctor's appointments as he could. Ralph rested his hand on his mother's stomach while they all cuddled on the couch watching movies, seemingly fascinated by every movement of his little brother inside her.

Walter rapped lightly at the boy's bedroom door. "Ralph?"

Silence.

He knocked again, slightly harder. "Ralph, buddy?"

Still nothing. Walter cracked the door open. "Ralph."

"Huh?"

"Watch your eyes," he said, pausing for a moment before flicking the light switch. Ralph sat up. "What's wrong?"

"Your mom's up." Walter couldn't help the smile that came over his face. "I think it's going to be today."

"How is she?"

"She's good." Walter crossed the room and sat on the edge of the bed. "Uncomfortable. But that's been the norm the past few months."

"Yeah." Ralph smiled.

"You know, Ralph," Walter said, "your mom and I are so excited about this child. And it's even more exciting to us knowing that you're happy about it, too. We're so incredibly lucky – both of us – to have a son like you." He reached out and covered the boy's hand with one of his.

"Well," Ralph said, shrugging. "Of course I'm happy. Now that you and my mom will have a baby of your own, we're tied together even more." He turned his hand over under Walter's, curling his fingers around the older genius'. "She worked so hard to give me a relationship with Drew. Now no matter what happens, nothing will ever fully break us apart."

Walter hoped the sick feeling that was pooling in his stomach wasn't evident on his face. Ralph didn't want a sibling. He wanted stability.


Drop a review if you'd like, to let me know what you thought! I'd make promises about when the next chapter will be up, but we all know with me that's a recipe for disaster.